Judge Richard Seymour QC is evidently a fan of the cinema. Sentencing a cheating gambler to a suspended jail term, he quoted Clint Eastwood’s line from Dirty Harry: “Do ya feel lucky?” though he wisely refrained from adding “Well, do ya punk?” This could be the start of a new trend in the courts where all sentences are accompanied by a well-chosen cinematic reference.

In response to the plainly phoney plea for clemency there is always “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn” from Gone With the Wind; and for the really macho judge, the convict could be sent to jail with the words “Hasta la vista, baby” from The Terminator 2 ringing in his ears. As part of a plea bargain, the judge could make the defendant “an offer he can’t refuse” (The Godfather). Most pertinent of all, however, would be Sylvester Stallone in Judge Dredd: “I am the law.”